Globe Telecom, Philippines’ telecommunications provider has introduced an unlimited SMS service for postpaid subscribers.
Dubbed The Globe MySuperTXT All add-on comes with a price tag of US$13.78 for 30 days and offers unlimited text messages to all mobile networks. The service is also available as a daily option for US$0.46. The add-on will be available until May 30 this year.
Philippine telecommunications provider Globe Telecom is reportedly offering its unlimited SMS service to its postpaid subscribers.
According to the company, its ‘MySuperTxtAll’ allow postpaid subscribers to send unlimited text messages to all networks. Without the need for an extra phone or SIM, postpaid subscribers can make unlimited text messages to subscribers of Smart Communications, Sun Cellular, Touch Mobile, Talk ‘n Text or Red Mobile.
The service is available until May 30 and postpaid subscribers will be charged US$13.70 per month on top of their current bill.
Philippine mobile networks are pressurising the telecoms regulator, the NTC to release an additional spectrum so that they can maintain mobile broadband network quality.
The call comes after the regulator rejected an earlier proposal to allow the operators to impose a limit on the amount of data a customer could download. It has been estimated that just one percent of their customers absorb 40% of the available broadband capacity.
According to Globe Telecom, they need additional frequencies for them to deliver an improved broadband service. They have been asking this from the NTC.
The regulator though states that it has nearly run out of available spectrum in the 2.3Ghz and 2.5Ghz bands, and all the available spectrum in the common 3G band, 2100Mhz has already been allocated. The companies also added that the spectrum blocks are fragmented which limits their use for mobile broadband services.
The regulator is currently considering proposals to release some of the 700 MHz spectrum for mobile broadband services.
A well-known retailer of mobile phones, accessories and services, Skynet Mobile in Qatar, will be joining the network of Vodafone Money Transfer (VMT) following a successful dry run.
The arrival of Skynet Mobile to VMT is part of the plans of Vodafone Qatar to extend the services to other destinations following a good response from the Filipino workers in Qatar after its launch late last year.
All Skynet branches will provide Cash In/Cash Out services for VMT and accept e-money in exchange for goods and services, including Red pre-paid plans and Mobile Internet recharge.
According to Irfan Ali, Head of Vodafone Money Transfer, Distribution, Vodafone Qatar, Skynet’s convenient locations and highly trained staff ensure Vodafone customers will find it easier to send their money home to family and friends in the Philippines using VMT.
Philippine conglomerate San Miguel Corp. said Monday its unit Vega Telecom Inc. has acquired A.G N. Philippines from ISM Communications Corp.
A.G.N. owns 40% of Eastern Telecommunications Philippines Inc., a landline services provider.
The share purchase agreement was signed Dec. 30, San Miguel said in a filing to the stock exchange.
The company didn’t provide financial details.
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The shareholding in Filipino fixed line and cellular operator Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) has been increased by Japanese mobile operator NTT DoCoMo.
It has also been reported that after the transaction, DoCoMo holds 20.8% of PLDT’s stock which has increased from 16.52% in March.
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Installation of 2,000 new base stations has been planned by Philippine communications provider Globe Telecom this year. The new base stations will be installed for 3G and WiMAX services on account of expected traffic rise by 35 to 40 percent per year by the operator.
3000 base station is currently owned by Globe Telecom and the company aims to bring this number to 5,000 this year. The figure has been filed by the operator with the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC). Need for additional 3G spectrum is also pointed by the operator and at present it has 10 MHz of 3G spectrums.
The regulator on the other hand is planning to auction the last 3G slot this year and it allowed the current 3G licensees to participate in the auction.
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The proposal for transfer of ownership of Bell Telecommunications Philippines Inc (BellTel) has been approved by the Philippines’ telecoms regulator, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC).
The ownership would be transferred to Two Cassandra-CCI Conglomerates, a holding company that once owned a small stake in Liberty Telecoms Holdings, which was bought by San Miguel Corp (SMC) together with partner Qatar Telecoms.
The move will result into PHP3.6 billion (USD78 million) cash injection into BellTel. 40% stake in BellTel was acquired by Two Cassandra on December 18, 2009 and both the parties signed an agreement according to which Cassandra will buy the remaining six million shares or 60% of the issued and outstanding capital stock of BellTel after the NTC approves the change in ownership.
Two minority shareholders of BellTel, South China Resources Inc. and Liberty Flour Mills Inc also sold off their stakes to Two Cassandra.
Indian telecom operators added the highest number of new cellular users in the world in a single month in August.
With 5.9 million new mobile users,
India
has beaten
China
, which added 5.19 million new cellular users in the same period. Other countries in the top five include
Russia
with 3.6 million new mobile subscribers,
Brazil
with 2 million additions and the
Philippines
where 1.9 million new cellular subscribers were added in August.
Explosive Growth
Mr T.V. Ramachandran, Director General, Cellular Operator’s Association of India, said that this explosive growth in subscriber numbers was a direct result of the forward looking policies of the Government, the enabling regulatory structure and the commitment of the industry to deliver increased access to subscribers with ever improving affordability. “With this growth,
India
was well on course to exceed the COAI forecast of 130 million subscribers by December 2006,” said Mr Ramachandran
As per global analysts Wireless Intelligence, the last half billion cellular subscribers had come in a record time of 12 months and has been mainly added in the very high-growth emerging markets of
China
,
India
and
Russia
. According to Wireless Intelligence, the global mobile industry has been growing at around 40 million subscribers per month, which is the highest volume of growth that the market has ever seen. The share of the Asia Pacific region in this growth is 41 per cent with
India
and
China
alone accounting for 25 per cent of the total subscriber growth worldwide over the last year.
Going forward, it is estimated that the cellular mobile subscribers will grow by another 500 million to reach 3 billion by the end of 2007. As per experts, the contribution by
India
to this growth would be the maximum and is estimated to be 80 million new cellular subscribers.
Source- http://www.moneycontrol.com
Technorati : Brazil, Cellular, India, Philippines, Russia, operator
Ice Rocket : Brazil, Cellular, India, Philippines, Russia, operator
